Tag: Phoenix Hotels
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This Guest is High On Aloft Hotels
We rarely ever get such glowing reviews of a hotel (that aren't planted by a PR person) but this one from a business traveler lady is really, really, really enthusiastic. She writes about a recent stay at the Aloft Hotel by the Phoenix airport:
Omg I love this place! Had to zip in and out of Phoenix for a quick business trip and unfortunately no budget for a great hotel and had to stay close to the airport. What a pleasant surprise! A cool and comfortable hotel that far surpasses your choices in the same price range. Beautiful room layout, fluffy beds, a hip and trendy lobby bar, better than average bathrooms, not to mention wall mounted tvs...... I will definitely be checking out if there are other Alofts when I travel!
Agreed. Aloft is a nice surprise for an airport hotel especially with free WiFi and a lively social scene downstairs. It's not always in the same price range as other airport hotels (sometimes it can be higher) but we found room rates at this Aloft for $124 this weekend, which, FWIW, beats the Courtyard By Marriott by $15.
Love or hate Aloft? Sound off in comments below!
Hotel News / Hotel Smoking / Ben Bethel / Phoenix Hotels / Hotel Technology / Hotel Amenities / blucigs / → All Tags
As Promised, The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix is Now Selling blucigs E-Cigarettes
A couple of weeks ago, Ben Bethel, the owner of the Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix let us know that he would be selling e-cigarettes to his smoking guests. He told us:
We're tired of charging guests $250 for smoking charges, tired of deep-cleaning guest rooms after they're smoked in, and tired of chasing after guests who are smoking in our pool area and rooftop bar. So, we're going to start encouraging guests to use E-Cigarettes, to the point that I'm even going to sell them at the front desk.
Not long after our story went up, Bethel had partnered up with blucigs to sell guests their brand of e-cigarettes for $10 each. Now we can report that the hotel is selling blucig's disposables product line with flavor options of Menthol and Classic Tobacco.
Hotel News / Hotel Smoking / Ben Bethel / Phoenix Hotels / Hotel Technology / Hotel Amenities / → All Tags
The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix Will Sell E-Cigarettes to Guests Looking for a Fix
The Clarendon Hotel in Phoenix is taking a novel approach to dealing with rogue smokers in their non-smoking rooms by selling them electronic cigarettes to puff on.
Owner Ben Bethel tells HotelChatter doing this will not only make the guests feel comfortable but also save him the hassle of trying to recoup the smoking fines. He says:
We're tired of charging guests $250 for smoking charges, tired of deep-cleaning guest rooms after they're smoked in, and tired of chasing after guests who are smoking in our pool area and rooftop bar.
So, we're going to start encouraging guests to use E-Cigarettes, to the point that I'm even going to sell them at the front desk.
I think this is a big issue for hotels, and could save guests a lot of hassle/frustration. Now they can smoke in the pool, on the rooftop bar, or even in their bed in their guest room.
Celebrity Scoop / Hotel Pools / Phoenix Hotels / Naked Hotels / Heidi Klum / → All Tags
Which Hotel Wouldn't Let Heidi Klum Go Topless?
Maybe it's the long weekend talking, but we think everyone just needs to chill out over the whole Heidi Klum topless sunbathing incident. In case you haven't heard, the 5' 9" TV host and former model admitted to Jay Leno on Thursday night that she was almost kicked out of a Phoenix hotel for ignoring a security staff member's request for her to cover up.
"I'm surprised you have a photo of me wearing a [bikini] top. I don't really like to wear tops because I hate tan lines." She makes a valid point, but then again, she's one of the world's highest-paid models. We're guessing if everyone had bodies like hers, we'd be seeing more topless action in hotel pools. A lot more.
Hotel Video Tours / Hotel Coffee / In-Room Coffee Makers / Phoenix Hotels / Hotel Amenities / Casino Hotels / Caesars Entertainment Hotels / → All Tags
Nice Coffee Maker, Shame About the Location at Harrah's Ak-Chin
Aint nothing like a cup of coffee in the morning before you put your face on, which is why we were delighted to find a coffee maker in our room at Harrah’s Ak-Chin in Phoenix this week. Just one problem – it’s placed in the bathroom, and that’s every bit as gross as using the phone on the can, no?
Hygiene matters and torturously slow (albeit free) WiFi aside, we’re extremely pleasantly surprised by our room here. Having slept our way through most of the Harrah’s properties in Vegas, Tunica and New Orleans, we assume most standard casino rooms will be pretty grim, but this is actually pretty damn nice. Take a look.
Hotel Hype / Hotel Rumors / Ace Hotels / Joie de Vivre Hotels / JDV Hotels / Phoenix Hotels / → All Tags
Is An Ace Hotel Opening in Scottsdale? No, It's Not
We got a tad too excited when we saw some internet chatter saying the hipster hotel brand du jour, Ace Hotels, would open in Scottsdale but upon closer look, it was just wishful thinking.
The Phoenix New Times reports that the James Scottsdale, Mondrian Scottsdale, er the Hotel Theodore could turn into an Ace Hotel now that The Sydell Group (the owners of the Ace NYC and Ace Palm Springs) have purchased the property with plans for a renovation and a rebranding.
We agree--an Ace Scottsdale is an excellent idea. Why have a random boutique hotel like the Theodore when you could capitalize off the success of the fun Ace brand?
Hotel Openings / Hotel Opening Rates / Phoenix Hotels / Westin Hotels / College Hotels / Starwood Preferred Guests / → All Tags
Westin Phoenix Downtown Will Open March 10, Probably
If you're looking to celebrate can't-come-soon-enough spring, you could do it at the brand-spankin'-new Westin Phoenix Downtown, which will open next week, sort of.
Although the hotel's set for a March 10 opening, reservations are currently only being accepted starting March 17. When we called to ask whether that meant the hotel wasn't opening until then, we were told that no, they are pretty sure it'll open March 10 - but just to be certain, they aren't taking reservations yet. Although, the nice man said, within a couple of days, they should open up the 10th for booking. All being well. Let's hope they do, else someone's gonna have an empty hotel for the first week!
Anyways, rooms on March 17 officially start at $199 a night, but if you use the code "FMOPEN" when booking online, all of the rooms will cost $179, even those that originally cost more than $199 a night. Hotel loyalty points alert: If you stay there between March 25 and April 30, you'll earn double Starwood Preferred Guests Starpoints.
Westin Hotels / Hotel Openings / Phoenix Hotels / College Hotels / Hotel News / → All Tags
Sleeping in Phoenix Will Be 'Heavenly' in March
With only three more months left to go in 2010, we're already turning our thoughts to hotel openings for next year and it looks like early 2011 will be quite active. We've got 45 Park Lane, Trump Ocean Club Panama and now The Westin Phoenix which was just announced this morning as opening in March 2011.
The 242-room hotel will actually be located in the Phoenix Civic Plaza, adjacent to the Arizona State University Downtown campus, making it an ideal spot for college visitors. But it will also be across the street from a METRO stop where trains connect to the Sky Harbor International Airport and we're all about not having to fork over money for cabs from the airport.
You can also expect the Westin Heavenly bed, Heavenly toiletries, a Westin WORKOUT fitness center and the Province, restaurant which will serve Latin American and Spanish-inspired cuisine. Even better, this new Westin should get some of those fancy new room designs we talked about a few weeks ago. Reservations are not being taken yet but we will let you know when they open. Still, the new year is looking very bright indeed.
Hotel Lawsuits / Hotel News / Marriott Hotels / Phoenix Hotels / In-Room Coffee / → All Tags
Another Reason to Avoid the In-Room Coffee Maker
Quite often, hotel guests stay away from the in-room coffee because it either tastes like crap, the machine is difficult to figure out or worse yet, it costs money. But now there could be another reason to avoid the in-room coffee machines--they could really mess your hand up. From the NY Post:
Former Columbia University researcher Kristopher Karnauskas yesterday filed a $10 million suit against an Arizona hotel, claiming its percolator shattered in his hand, hurting him so badly he couldn't deliver a speech on global warming.
And what's more, the 27-year-old climate scientist claims he can no longer play his trumpet. His conflict with the carafe took place in January at a Phoenix Marriott, where he'd planned to deliver a speech on "The Response of the Equatorial Pacific Ocean to Global Warming."
A shard of glass severed a hand tendon, he said.
Thankfully, there's a new trend on the horizon in hotels to use Keurigs or other single-cup coffee makers in the rooms (see the Westin's Wakeup coffee maker) meaning we don't have to do deal with any glass percolators. But it will take a while for the big brands to get these installed in all of their rooms. Until then, you might be better off dragging yourself downstairs for a cup of coffee.
[Photo: LakersFan/TripAdvisor]
Hotel Hype / Kimpton Hotels / Hotel News / Phoenix Hotels / → All Tags
Hotel Palomar Phoenix Slated for a 2010 Opening
We were poking around the Kimpton new development page today (sidenote, dear Kimpton: please remove the Fairwind project that you told us was a no-go last week) when something caught our eye: A 250-room Hotel Palomar is planned for the downtown Phoenix area. Ohhh.
The hotel is slated to open its doors sometime in 2010, and is going up in a new mixed-use development called CityScape. The hotel will be part of a 34-story tower "at One South Central" (hehe, don't be a menace) and there will be 200 luxury residential condominium and retail space alongside the rooms.
This is actually the second Kimpton property in the area — Firesky has been representin' for a while already — and oh, by the way: we hear from the rumor mill that this was supposed to be the site of a proposed W Phoenix, but plans fell through and Kimpton snapped up the spot instead.
Hotel Amenities / Phoenix Hotels / Scottsdale Hotels / → All Tags
The Boulders Resort Sees the Glass as Half Full
It's a sign of the times: The Boulders Resort & Golden Door Spa's new turndown amenity is all about optimism. That's right, times have gotten so troubling that the Scottsdale resort seems to think their guests could use a few happy thoughts at bedtime — and apparently the Gideon Bible isn't cutting it anymore.
Instead, guests at the Boulders Resort find a copy of the book "Life is Good: Simple Words from Jake and Rocket." Though the goodwill is shared for free, guests also have the option of buying their copy and taking it with them in a pay-it-forward sort of way, since part of the profits are being donated to The Life is Good Kids Foundation, which supports charities dedicated to helping children who face unfair challenges.
Sure, it's a pretty touchy-feely turndown (and honestly, we'd probably still prefer a chocolate mint or even a sushi-inspired treat), but let's remember that the resort is located in — of all places — Carefree, Arizona.
Room Rate Drop Watch / Phoenix Hotels / Hotel Deals / → All Tags
It's Summer Right Now in Phoenix, Price-Wise
Turns out the W Scottsdale is not the only hotel in the Phoenix-area going through some rough times. The Arizona Republic reports that luxury hotels are offering their rooms at summer rates during the peak season--about 15 to 20 percent off their normal rates.
Hotels and resorts that routinely command $300 to $500 a night during the winter are on sale for 15 percent to 20 percent off, with some dangling rates of $199 a night and less on select dates, as well as previously unheard-of last-minute deals.
The fading Arizona Biltmore (recently snubbed by Prez Obama) has rooms open for $179 a night on Expedia. The new InterContinental Montelucia Resort and Spa in Paradise Valley (where Prez Obama stayed instead) has rates for $195 on Travelocity.
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